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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/25006294">FO-11K Vang-R</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyaniteHeart/pseuds/KyaniteHeart'>KyaniteHeart</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>VA-11 Hall-A (Video Game)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Epilogue, Cyberpunk, Dana Zane AKA Best Boss, F/F, Fore is best cat, after the game, dreary but still fun</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-07-01</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-07-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 02:16:10</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>9,950</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/25006294</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/KyaniteHeart/pseuds/KyaniteHeart</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Two years after VA-11 Hall-A closed, Jill is working a horrible job. Life had been rough for a while until she gets a call from Boss...</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Jill Stingray/Dana Zane</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>50</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Maintainance Tunnels</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>A loud crash woke up Jill. She was still not used to the amount of traffic accidents that happened near her apartment. She closed her eyes, even thought it didn’t change much, due to the darkness. Maybe a deep breath or two could calm her down. The frequent crashes had been a great source of stress for her lately and it getting to her. Jill opened her eyes again and noticed a dark outline was making its way towards her. The cat jumped up in her bed and found a spot that met his standards next to her. Fore had been good at noticing when Jill was on edge lately.</p><p>“I’m here for you, Jill.” ‘Fore’ Said in a hushed voice.</p><p>“Thanks, cat.” Jill replied with a weak smile. “You’re being such a great help by taking up half the bed.”</p><p>Jill sounded like she was complaining but she really did love that Fore was here. Lately she had not been very social. She actually hadn’t been very social ever since VA-11 Hall-A closed down two years ago.</p><p>Jill focused on the room again and it had already gotten brighter. She looked at her alarm clock. 5:33 AM.</p><p>“Lovely...” She mumbled.</p><p>“Too bad you can’t stay here and sleep all day like me.” ‘Fore’ mocked her.</p><p>“Shut it, cat.”</p><p>Jill got out of bed. She definitely wasn’t going to fall asleep again at this hour. The shift would start in two hours anyway. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the low light of the apartment. She had become rather good at navigating the apartment in the dark anyway, so the dim light didn’t really help much. Her uniform was still on the floor where she had thrown it the day before. She liked to call it that, but it wasn’t really a uniform. Jill just didn’t want to accept the job she had ended up getting. It really needed to be washed but what was the point when the suit was going to get just as dirty the next day.</p><p>Jill turned on the light in the bathroom and it flickered for a good five seconds before deciding to stay on. The face that stared back at her in the mirror was exhausted and sleep deprived. Their hair was a mess and their skin were pale. Jill almost couldn’t recognize herself. Working underground in the maintenance tunnels had been a rough gig. Granted, she had worked there a whole year. A whole year too much. She splashed some ice-cold water in her face, and she snapped out of it. Regarding water, ice-cold was all this tiny apartment offered. After drying her face, she tried fixing her hair for once. She put it up in a ponytail as soon as the worst clumps of hair were dealt with.</p><p>After brushing her teeth, she closed the squeaky bathroom door behind her and made her way to the balcony. It was a small balcony, but Jill was grateful to even have one at all. She pulled out a cigarette for her pocked.</p><p>“Want one?” She asked and looked down at the cat next to her.</p><p>“You gotta stop asking people who you know don’t smoke, Jill.” ‘Fore’ replied sternly.</p><p>“Yeah, yeah,” Jill sighed. “Old habit...”</p><p>“You do it almost everyday.” The cat persisted.</p><p>Jill ignored him and lit her cigarette. She closed her eyes and exhaled, trying not to focus on the burning wreckage down at the street level. Her apartment was quite high up but that didn’t seem to stop the sound of the commonly occurring traffic accidents near the complex.</p><p>“What I wouldn’t do for some peace and quiet...” Jill grumbled and threw the sad remains of her cigarette in the ashtray on her table.</p><p>“You’re the one who keeps talking.” ‘Fore’ said.</p><p>Jill shook her head at the cat’s remark and grabbed some cereal from the cabinet in the kitchen. She wasn’t hungry but she knew she was going to be later if she didn’t eat anything now. The cigarette had calmed her nerves a bit and as she ate, she realized the food helped as well. Even in this filthy apartment, she could still feel okay sometimes. She threw the bowl in the sink with the other dirty dishes and went to get her keys.</p><p>“Don’t burn the entire complex down while I’m gone, okay?” Jill said as she opened the door.</p><p>“Can’t promise anything, human.” ‘Fore’ replied.</p><p>She closed the door behind her and made sure to lock it properly. The locks were old and analogue. The keys were rusty, and she was always scared to leave Fore alone, even though she didn’t want to admit it. If she lost Fore, then she would truly be alone. She had plans to buy a better lock but that was apparently not allowed in this complex.</p><p>“Makes sense...” She muttered. “This place sucks.”</p><p>When she made it to street level, the wreckage had stopped burning. Not because anyone had bothered to put it out. It had simply started raining. A lot.</p><p>“What a perfect Wednesday...” She sighed and headed out into the pouring rain.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>It was just a ten-minute walk, but the rain still managed to soak her from head to toe. She pushed open the door to the maintenance tunnels and started the descent down the slippery, concrete stairs. Jill kept a tight grip on the railing. There had been quite a lot of injuries here due to the slippery stairs and this amount of rain certainly did not help. The dirty water from the streets was following her down the stairs. Finally, she reached the bottom of the stairwell and pushed the heavy metal door open. She looked from side to side. Not a single human in sight. Just endless, dimly lit tunnel at both sides. Jill let out a big sigh and started looking for any leaks.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>After just an hour, she had found three different leaks. It was a miracle that this system even stayed online. At this point, Jill was almost convinced it was entirely because of her that this part of the city was still functioning.</p><p>“Just nine more hours...” Jill mumbled to herself and grimaced.</p><p>If someone told Jill that time in the tunnels moved half as fast as the rest of the world, she would not be surprised. This job never got more exciting than a small leak in the tubes that ran through the tunnels. It was easy to spot and easy to fix.</p><p>Jill wiped her forehead. These tunnels were both humid and uncomfortably warm. She looked at her phone and realized she was nearing the five-hour mark. That meant she could take a small break, but only a small one. Jill once tried getting away with staying away for longer, but they apparently have people who monitor all the maintenance workers. That somehow sounds more boring than this job.</p><p>After the long ascent up the slippery stairwell, Jill was met with the noise of the city. The sun was hidden behind a grey blanket but at least the pouring rain had stopped. She made her way onto the street and put on her headphones. Choosing today’s music always reminded her of her days working as a bartender at Va-11 Hall-a.</p><p>“I would do anything to back to those days...” She mutters and let out a sigh.</p><p>She had tried getting a job at other bars. Boss had even helped her with that, but she was never employed. Jill chuckled to herself. After all this time she still called her Boss. Even thought it was years ago she was her actual boss.</p><p>Jill snapped out of her thoughts when she realized she had reached her destination. A tiny, somewhat quiet park. She had found it by sheer luck when she first moved here. It was easy to miss, which was why barely anyone came here. She sat down on a bench and closed her eyes, trying to relax. Jill fished out a cigarette from her pocket. If anything would get her to relax it was that. She tried her best not think about the days at Va-11 Hall-a, but it all came flooding back. Jill had done her best to forget about those memories. All they did was remind her of how nice things could be. Deep down she knew things weren’t perfect back then but they sure as hell were at lot better than this.</p><p>Jill let out a sigh and threw away the burned-out cigarette. Nothing was going to calm her down if that wasn’t even helping. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath of the heavy city air. It was time to get back into the tunnels.</p><p>The rest of the work hours went as they always did. Boring. Nothing spectacular happened. She just wandered the humid tunnels all by herself.</p><p>Finally, after five heated hours, Jill’s shift had ended. She had never met whoever did the night shifts, which she found a bit strange, but she never dwelled on it. The heavy door locked behind her with a click and Jill ascended the stairs for the second time today. When she reached the surface, the weather was still cold and dreary but she didn’t let that get her down too much. Jill smiled a little as she put on her headphones and played today’s carefully crafted playlist. The music was some of the things that kept her mood up through these tough times. It was too bad headphones were banned on the job. That would make it a lot more bearable.</p><p>The walk home was quick, and she reached the apartment in no time. The door opened after the third try on turning the rusty key and Jill made it inside her small apartment. She closed the door behind her and sighed. Today was over.</p><p>“What are you sighing for?” The cat asked and walked towards Jill. “You’re not the one who has been here, without food, for hours.” ‘Fore’ complained.</p><p>“You’re spoiled, cat.” Jill replied and smirked. “I’ll get you some food in a minute.”</p><p>She went over to the sink and splashed water on her face. The cold water was refreshing after the hours in the hot tunnels. She dried her face in a towel and gave Fore some food. He immediately went over to eat it.</p><p>“Guess you really were hungry, huh?” Jill said.</p><p>Fore didn’t respond.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>Jill took of her work suit and threw it into her closet. She looked around and found some old pink t-shirt on the floor. She smelled it and it passed the test. After putting it on, she realized it said ‘SLUT’ in big, bold letter on the front.</p><p>“Yeah, whatever...” Jill mumbled and threw herself on the bed.</p><p>She found her old laptop and started to carefully craft tomorrow’s playlist. None of her favourite artists had put out any new music lately, so she had to resort to music she already knew. Sometimes it took her an hour to put a little playlist together but today she knew exactly what she wanted. She picked out her a couple of her favourite synthwave tunes and a long, ambient piece to finish it off with. Jill was just about to find a good song to start off the playlist with when her phone rang.</p><p>“Well that’s rare...” She said and picked it up.</p><p>That’s when she saw who was calling.</p><p>“Boss!?” Jill exclaimed in disbelief.</p><p>It had been so long she wasn’t sure what to do. A part of her wanted to ignore the call so she could be free of how awkward it had gotten between them. She quickly dismissed that voice and accepted the call.</p><p>“Hi!” Jill said a little loudly. “It’s Jill.”</p><p>“Jill!” Boss’s voice sounded tiny and feint through the old phone speaker. “It’s been so long!”</p><p>“Sorry I haven’t called...” Jill apologized.</p><p>“No need to worry, Jill.” Boss said with a reassuring tone. “I can imagine life has been rough on you.”</p><p>“Yup.” Jill said, her voice deadpan. “Things aren’t exactly great here.”</p><p>“I haven’t had it easy either but...” Boss started but cut herself off. “I have something to tell you, Jill.”</p><p>“Oh, yeah?” Jill lifted an eyebrow.</p><p>“It might make you feel a little better.” Boss said in a hopeful tone.</p><p>“Just spit it out, Boss!” Jill had grown impatient.</p><p>“I’m opening a new bar!” Boss announced happily.</p><p>“You WHAT?” Jill yelled in disbelief.</p><p>“Yup!”</p><p>“T-that’s amazing!” Jill stuttered, feeling a smidge of jealousy of Boss’s success.</p><p>“I...” Boss tried but grew silent for a few seconds.</p><p>“Boss?” Jill asked. “You still there?”</p><p>“Yeah, I called to ask you...” She trailed off again. “Do you wanna work as a bartender again, maybe?”</p><p>It was unlike Boss to sound so uncertain. She probably felt like she was asking a lot of Jill but in reality, Boss was saving her life. She would do anything, literally anything, to work somewhere else. Especially if it was being a bartender for Boss again. Nothing sounded better to her.</p><p>“Of course!” Jill replied and a smile tugged at her lips.</p><p>“Great!” Boss replied, relieved. “I was afraid you were gonna say no...”</p><p>“Why would you think that?”</p><p>“I don’t know...” Boss sounded thoughtful. “I think I just really wanted you to say yes.”</p><p>A full-on smile broke through on Jill’s face. She hadn’t smiled like this in what felt like forever. She closed her eyes and savoured the moment. Things were going to change for the better bow.</p><p>“A-anyways...” Boss continued, sounding a little thrown off from how emotional she had just gotten. “Work starts next Monday.”</p><p>“Sounds great, Boss!” Jill replied, her smile still beaming. “Just one more question, Boss.”</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“Does this bar have a silly name just like last time?” Jill asked, hoping she would say yes.</p><p>“Oh, yeah!” Boss said, as if she had just remembered it. “It’s called FO-11K Vang-R.”</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. First Day Back</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jill arrives on her first day back working for Boss. She meets some old friends, sees some new faces but Boss is acting a little odd...</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey everyone! Before we get into this chapter, you can listen along to Jill's playlist here: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5T42PZdr7zHvMZm3qeH1vW?si=sVyzVyirQ3WIZOHlB0I-LA</p>
<p>Enjoy~</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>There was no loud crash that day. Jill actually slept until the alarm woke her up. She almost got a full eight hours of sleep for once. It was nice feeling fully awake for once. She hopped out of bed and went through her usual morning routine, but with a lot more enthusiasm than before.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Someone woke up on the right side of the bed today.” ‘Fore’ commented as Jill finished her bowl of cereal.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Damn right I did, kitty cat.” Jill said and flashed Fore a smug smile.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill put on her coat and shot out the door, almost forgetting to lock it behind her. After fiddling with the lock for a bit, she went down the stairs and made it to the street level. The weather was somehow worse than yesterday but it didn’t bother Jill today. She walked out into the biting cold with a smile on her lips, knowing today was her first day back at Boss’s bar. She had already forgotten the name of it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was it Funk Wonker?” Jill mumbled to herself as she was walking. “No, that doesn’t sound quite right...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She wasn’t quite sure what to expect but the happy feeling never left her on her way there. Luckily, that bar was not far from Jill’s apartment. A part of her hoped that Boss had considered that when she purchased the place but that wasn’t likely. Just a lovely coincidence.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>It was a bit hard to find, just like the old bar. As she was about to open the door, Jill looked up and read the neon sign.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“FO-11K Vang-R.” Jill read aloud. “Not sure how to even pronounce that...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She shrugged and opened the door. Jill was met by the smell of soap and alcohol, almost as if the place had reeked of beer but Boss had tried her best to get the place to smell nicer. She had somewhat succeeded. After taking a better look at the place, it resembled VA-11 Hall-A quite a lot. Jill assumed that was intentional. Boss was quite fond of the old place after all. And so was Jill. It almost felt like coming home after a long time away.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jill!” Boss's head peaked out of what Jill assumed to be her office door. “You’re here!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss!” Jill said excitedly. “It’s so good to see you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You too.” Boss made her way towards Jill to greet her properly, which was with a very tight handshake.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Ouch.” Jill grimaced. “Your handshake hasn’t loosened one bit since last time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s good to hear.” Boss chuckled. “I hope you’re excited to be back.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m very excited!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I can tell.” Boss smirked. “It’s not often I see you display this much... emotion.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She made a wild gesture with her arms.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, today is a good day.” Jill said with confidence. “I can feel it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, the bar is technically open now.” Boss said. “A customer could walk through the door any second.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I doubt that many people are gonna show up today.” Jill said skeptically. “It’s only the first day, ya know?.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know some people.” Boss said in a secretive voice. “Word spreads around fast.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright then.” Jill said and raised an eyebrow. “I’ll get behind the bar and see what happens.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Great!” Boss said and started walking towards her office but turned around before reaching it. “You don’t need a tutorial or anything, right? It has been a while.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss, I know how to do this.” Jill said and rolled her eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine.” Boss said and smirked. “Then make me a Piano Man for me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A Piano Man? That shouldn’t be a problem.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill took off her coat and made her way behind the bar counter. The drink-making machine was the same model as the one in the previous bar. Perhaps even the same one. This should be a piece of cake.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Two adelhyde, one bronson extract, four powdered delta...” Jill mumbled and stopped to think. “...and five flanergide and four karmotrine.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She put the ice in it and started mixing. After a few seconds she pressed the button again and… it failed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh no...” Jill grumbled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure you don’t need a tutorial?” Boss asked again, but not in a condescending way.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess I just can’t remember them off the top of my head anymore.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay to use the guide, Jill.” Boss said and smiled at her. “No one is judging. And if they are, just call me and I will personally throw them out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill knew she was half-joking but imagining Boss throwing out some asshole was pretty funny.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, Boss.” Jill said and smiled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’ll get the hang of it in no time!” Boss said as she walked back towards her office. “Oh, and one last thing. I got a new fancy jukebox. You can put on whatever you want.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nice!” Jill exclaimed. “You’re the best, Boss!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It was the least I could do.” She said and closed the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill immediately put on the playlist she had made the day before. It was filled to the brim with the most uplifting tracks Jill could think of. The music started blaring out of the speakers and she turned it down to a comfortable level. This was a new beginning. It almost felt like she had died and gone to Valhalla. Except for this time she had gone to… She had forgotten the name again. It didn’t matter. Jill was working at Boss’s bar and that was all she really wanted to do right now. She looked around, making sure everything was ready for customers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Time to mix drinks and change lives.”</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Boss was wrong. Today was a slow day. So slow that no one had come by this far and Jill swore she had been standing there for hours. After Boss’s comment, she had expected the bar to be packed but it seemed like even the power of Boss herself wasn’t great enough to fill a bar on opening day. Just as Jill was having said thoughts, the door slammed open and a familiar voice greeted her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my god! Jill!” Dorothy squealed happily.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Dorothy?” Jill said, surprised.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s been foreeeeeeeever!” She said and shook her head in disbelief.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, sorry for kinda disappearing.” Jill said and looked down.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh don’t worry about that, silly! I doubt you were trying to avoid me on purpose.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I definitely wasn’t!” Jill quickly added. “Things were just kinda bad after the bar shut down, ya know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I getcha.” Dorothy nodded. “I loved coming there after finishing up with my clients. Well, I just loved going there in general. It was always fun to chat with you and all the other weirdos who just happened to be there!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I really hope this new place attracts the same kind of people.” Jill said, hopeful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You want Mr. Donovan to be a regular again?” Dorothy teased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gods, no!” Jill said and shook her head. “Literally anyone else would be better.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Couldn’t agree more.” Dorothy nodded and paused. “Well, since this is a bar, maybe I should order something!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sounds good. What would you like to order?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hmmm...” She said, seemingly deep in thought. “How about a good ol’ Sugar Rush?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No problem!” Jill said, excited to use the mixing machine again.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Two adelhyde and one powdered delta. The easiest drink to mix.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Want extra karmotrine in it?” Jill asked before pressing the mix button.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No thanks. I have a client later and I don’t like being drunk on the job.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought being drunk would make it more fun?” Jill asked while mixing the drink.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I like to stay sober so my judgement is better.” She said. “Mostly because horny people’s judgement is already bad.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Makes sense.” Jill nodded slightly and passed the drink to the lilim. “So you’re still doing the same kind of thing?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup!” She said with a big smile. “The market has only grown!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not sure that’s a good thing...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Me neither!” Dorothy said and shrugged. “But I sure as hell am taking advantage of it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“As long as you enjoy it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, don’t worry. It’s a lot of fun!” She said enthusiastically. “You get to meet so many different people! One time there was this one guy who wanted to...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Her story was cut off by another customer who had somehow snuck their way over to the bar without any of them noticing.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can I get a beer, please?” The guy said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gillian!” Jill said, even though she had expected him to show up at some point.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“John-face!” Dorothy exclaimed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup. It’s me.” He chuckled. “Boss asked me to come by today and I happened to be free today.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She didn’t try to hire you?” Jill asked, a little surprised.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nope.” He responded. “I have a different gig now but it’s a secret.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Makes sense.” Jill shook her head at her former co-worker. “You’re quite the secretive guy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Gil!” Boss yelled across the room. “You came by!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You sound surprised.” He noted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, it is you after all.” She chuckled. “I’m glad you came by to see FO-11K Vang-R.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oooooh, does it have like, a secret meaning?” Dorothy asked curiously. “Or is it just random gibberish like all the other buildings?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, it actually has a meaning.” Boss started. “Since the old bar was almost a wordplay on Valhalla, I had this fun idea of keeping it related to the old nordic...”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh my!” Dorothy suddenly exclaimed. “I’m gonna be late! I have to leave now, bye!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I hope you come back soon!” Jill yelled after her as she ran out the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What a strange girl.” Gil said and took a sip of his beer.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, but she is quite fun.” Jill said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll take your word for it.” He said. “She was always your customer, so I never really talked to her. I did see her pour a drink on herself once though.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, I remember that.” Jill chuckled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I’ll get back to my office now.” Boss said, seemingly a little upset that she didn’t get to tell Dorothy about the meaning of the bar name.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I wouldn’t mind hearing why the bar is named Funk… Fonk Vonker…?” Jill tried.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No, no.” Boss insisted. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll let you two catch up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I bet she spent way too long on finding a building that had a name with some kind of mysterious meaning.” Jill said when Boss was out of earshot.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Knowing her, you’re probably right.” Gil said and finished his beer. “Anyways, I’m off to meet up with a friend from work now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A secret friend from your secret work.” Jill teased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Top secret.” He nodded. “I’ll see you around!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hope you’ll come again.” Jill said as Gillian left the bar.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was strange seeing two old friends like that, all of a sudden. Jill’s mood had only improved throughout today. Seeing Boss, Gillian, and Dorothy. She closed her eyes and listened to the synthy music playing through the speakers and took a deep breath. When she opened her eyes again she was greeted with a stranger’s face, a little too close to hers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are you doing?” Jill asked and took a step back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I was gonna ask you the same.” He said and sat back down in the bar chair. “You’re were like, spacing the hell out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“No need to get all up in my personal space because of that.” Jill shook her head. “Would you like to order anything?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yes, I would like something manly.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Coming right up.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Something manly, something manly. A Piledriver should do. Jill poured up the karmotrine, flanergide and bronson extract and mixed the bitter drink.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Here’s you go, sir.” She said and placed the drink in front of the man. “A Piledriver.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He took a sip and grimaced. “Yikes! Perfect.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, what brings you here, space invader?” Jill asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My name is Alan.” He said in a stern voice, clearly not amused at Jill’s joke. “I just came by after work and wanted a drink. Plus, I had never seen this bar before so i decided to come on in.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, I’m glad you chose to come by.” Jill said. “It’s our first day.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh, that explains the absence of people.” Alan noted and looked around.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, it hasn’t exactly been busy today.” Jill said. “But the bar I used to work at didn’t have that many customers at any given time.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Isn’t that annoying?” He asked. “Barely having anyone here to serve?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I like it this way. Then I can get to know the customer better.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s not really a part of the job, is it?” He said and raised an eyebrow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“A lot of people come here because they’re stressed or feel bad in general. Some of them might not even have anyone to talk to, so I like to think I’m helping a little bit.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I guess that makes sense.” He nodded. “Ever met anyone famous while working?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There was this Kira Miki girl at a bar I previously worked at. She had a rather large following.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Never heard of her.” Alan said and downed the rest of the Piledriver. “But I don’t really know any celebrities.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Why did you ask then?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Dunno. Just curious.” He said and shrugged. “I’ll get going now. Gotta be home for dinner or the wife will get mad.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hope you come back soon.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Might do.” Alan said and left.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill sighed. She was craving a cigarette and she noticed that she had not taken a break yet.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss?” She yelled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah?” Boss replied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m gonna take my break!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill went out the back door. It led to a small alley full of trash. She looked up at the dark sky and inhaled the heavy city air. At least it wasn’t raining. Jill fished out a cigarette from her pocket and lit it. It was nice clearing her head after that Alan guy. he wasn’t even bad but it had just been so long since Jill had been around people all day. And it was wearing her down faster than she expected. Hopefully, she would get back to her usual self in no time. She finished the cigarette and threw it in the ashtray near the door. The dark night sky and the city noise wasn’t bothering her much today. She smiled and went back inside.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jill looked at her phone. It was almost two hours since her break and there had been no one here since that Alan guy. It would still be a little while before Jill could go home, so she hoped more people would show up soon.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Doesn’t look like there will be many more people coming in today.” Boss said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She had been tinkering with some old arcade machines that no one ever used. At least no one used them back at VA-11 Hall-A.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nope. Doesn’t seem like it.” Jill replied with a sigh.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She was still pumped to be back but the lack of guests had taken her mood down a notch.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“How about you serve me a drink?” Boss said and sat down in the bar chair across from Jill.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That can be arranged.” Jill said and smiled at her. “What would you like?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Nothing from the machine.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh? What then?” Jill asked, a little confused.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“There’s some Absinthe under the bar table.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill looked in one of the many compartments in the counter and found a green bottle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“This one?” Jill asked and put the bottle on the table.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yup.” Boss nodded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill found two regular glasses and poured a good amount of Absinthe in both of them.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Here ya go.” Jill said and put one glass in front of Boss.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re drinking Absinthe too?” Boss said and raised an eyebrow.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve had it a couple times before.” Jill lied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She had only had it once and it was so bad she brought it to work so she could get rid of it. It wouldn’t even surprise her if this was that same bottle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright then.” Boss said and took a big sip.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill tried doing the same but ended up spitting most of it back out. She grimaced and looked over at Boss. She looked like she was holding back laughter.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I had a feeling you would take a big sip if I did.” She chuckled.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You tricked me.” Jill noted. “How mean.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I just wanted to have a little fun. Today has been more boring than I anticipated.” She admitted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You expected more people to show up?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah.” Boss sighed. “I thought I had done a good job promoting the place to everyone I know!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe they just didn’t have time today?” Jill tried.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe.” She said, looking at her empty glass. “Or maybe I’m just getting too old to run a cool bar.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss, how old are you?” Jill asked, genuinely curious.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Boss poured another glass of Absinthe.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s a secret.” Boss looked up at Jill and smirked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You and Gil with your damn secrets.” Jill pouted. “Do you ever open up to people?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sometimes.” Boss said and smiled a little as if she was thinking about old memories. “But not often.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I should’ve guessed it was hard to get to know the famous Dana Zane.” Jill teased.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Pffft. Sure.” Boss said and shook her head. “Not many people have managed that.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Is that a challenge?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What? To get to know me?” Boss asked rhetorically. “You already know me pretty well, Jill. Better than most people at least.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Perhaps. But I only know you on a surface level, ya know?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Getting further than that is impossible!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss, how much Absinthe have you had?” Jill asked, a little concerned. “It’s not like you to get drunk.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Pfft. I’m just tipsy, kiddo.” She said and finished another glass of Absinthe.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, I’m hiding this bottle from you.” Jill said and picked up the empty bottle.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Heheheh. I already finished it.” Boss said with a proud look on her face.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Damn it, Boss.” Jill sighed. “It’s usually you who take care of me when I get drunk and rant about life.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Well, today it’s your turn!” Boss said and nodded wildly. “And I’m only tipsy!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, tipsy Boss.” Jill said. “Where do you live? I gotta get you somewhere so you can rest.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I sleep in my office like a cool person!” Boss shouted and stumbled over to her office door. “Bye-bye, Jill! The bar is closed now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Alright, Boss.” Jill said, still a little concerned. “You gonna be okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m Dana Zane!” She said. “I’m beyond okay!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“That’s great to hear.” Jill shook her head. “Goodnight, Boss.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Boss had already closed her office door behind her. At least she would be safe here. Jill grabbed her coat and went outside in the cold night. It was unlike Boss to just get drunk like that. Maybe the low amount of customers had bothered her a lot. Or maybe Jill had made her mad. Had she said something wrong? She couldn’t think of anything that would piss off Boss.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Jill unlocked the door to her apartment. Things were kind of quite today. At least compared to the standards of this place. She sat down in her bed and put a blanket around her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Was today as great as you hoped?” ‘Fore’ asked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Not sure.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What makes you unsure?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss.” Jill replied.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What about her?” The cat persisted.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She seems off, somehow.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are you basing this off?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She got drunk and she seemed mad at me.” Jill said, frustrated.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Maybe she wasn’t mad at you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I don’t know…” Jill trailed off. “It’s just a feeling.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You usually don’t care if you piss anyone off, Jill.” ‘Fore’ said.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Boss is special...” Jill sighed. “She means a lot to me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“She’s probably not mad at you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re probably right.” She admitted. “I guess I’m just afraid I did something wrong.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill got her computer and opened it. Maybe making tomorrow’s playlist would distract her a little bit from her racing thoughts. She searched through her playlists to find some more emotional songs. She should really just make a whole playlist with sad and emotional songs. That would make her life easier because she was quite often in a mood for that kind of music. Eventually, her thoughts started to calm down. The little conversation with Fore had helped a bit too. Boss probably wasn’t mad at her. But why was the mad then? She didn’t want anything to be bothering Boss so much it drove her to down half a bottle of Absinthe. Jill made a promise to herself to look after Boss for the next while, even though she knew that wouldn’t be easy. It was the least she could do for her.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Jill continued her night deep in thought. She wanted to be there for Boss but she didn’t know how. It was really hard to get to know her like Boss had made very clear. Jill had tried in the past but Boss always kept her at arm's length. She really wanted to be her friend and now she was more determined than ever. She pulled the duvet up over her and turned off the lights. Fore was sleeping with an eye open next to her. Jill closed her eyes, excited for what tomorrow was going to bring her way.</span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I hope you enjoyed this chapter of FO-11K Vang-R!!! More chapters will be coming soon! I am quite busy though, so expect there to be a week or two in between them on average.</p>
<p>See ya in the next one~</p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Old Habits</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Jill returns to the bar and Boss confronts her about what happened yesterday. Throughout the day, Jill meets some old and new faces and she ends up having another talk with Fore.</p>
          </blockquote><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Heyo everyone! Welcome back to another day at FO-11K Vang-R. You can check out Jill's new playlist here if you wanna listen along: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6jmpTWVW0Po7xiY9f4QBpP?si=t7xVhZwZQSSfdB9GhZIvjg</p><p>Enjoy~</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Everything was dark around Jill. The only thing in sight was the old metal chair she was sitting on. The darkness surrounding her was thick and suffocating like there was nothing but it. Boss came into view, almost as if the darkness created her. The place was dimly lit in a reddish light but Jill couldn’t spot any light sources. Just Jill, Boss, and a metal chair.</p><p>“You have disappointed me, Jill,” Boss said.</p><p>Jill tried to open her mouth and ask why but she couldn’t say a word. She could feel the darkness restraining her, making her watch Boss.</p><p>“I don’t want you around anymore,” Boss said in a monotone voice. “You keep doing things wrong.”</p><p>It was all very vague but it still plagued Jill’s mind. She wanted to ask what she had done wrong. How she could fix it. But she wasn’t allowed to do anything. Boss kept saying horrible things about Jill in that annoying monotone voice as if even talking to Jill was a waste of time. Jill’s tears dripped onto the ground but it made no sound at all. The only sound aside from Boss’s voice was a slight rumbling. It slowly grew louder but Jill didn’t notice it until it was deafening. It shook the darkness around her and it was like it cracked. Boss disappeared with it and Jill opened her eyes, bathed in sweat.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>Fore was resting on top of Jill's chest, purring loudly. He looked at Jill with his deep blue eyes.</p><p>“Did I wake you?” ‘Fore’ asked knowing damn well he did, once Jill had calmed down.</p><p>“I think so...” Jill said and bit her lip.</p><p>“It’s not like you to have nightmares.” The cat stated and kept purring.</p><p>“I know.” She muttered.</p><p>“You’re still worried Boss is upset with you?”</p><p>“Yeah,” Jill mumbled. “I usually don’t worry about what others think about me.”</p><p>“You already said that.” ‘Fore’ said. “Boss is special.”</p><p>“I’ll just see what happens before I draw any conclusions.”</p><p>“Or you could just ask her.” The cat pointed out. “Since you’re already drawing conclusions.”</p><p>“What would I even say?” Jill asked, frustrated.</p><p>“Just ask why she was upset yesterday.”</p><p>“Maybe...” Jill said and took a deep breath. “I’m gonna take a shower and clear up my head.”</p><p>“What makes you think I’ll let you move, human?” ‘Fore’ said teasingly.</p><p>He had stopped purring now.</p><p>“I can easily put you somewhere else, cat,” Jill said and gently put Fore somewhere else in the bed.</p><p>He didn’t seem to like that though. He hopped down from the bed in search of a new spot to sleep that wasn’t chosen by his human friend.</p><p>“Silly cat...” Jill mumbled and got up.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>The ice-cold shower calmed her mind a bit and eating some breakfast helped even more. She left the house in a hurry, both anxious and excited to get back to the bar. The walk was more pleasant than the day before. The weather had cleared up and it wasn’t freezing cold today. A few lonely clouds surfed lazily over the blue sky and she saw some birds fly by. Looking at it put Jill in a better mood. Seeing some natural color for once was pleasant. Finally, she reached the bar and opened the door with a sigh. The bar was seemingly empty but she knew Boss was somewhere around, probably hiding in her office. Jill put her coat away and took a step towards the bar and stopped. She wanted to ask Boss about what happened yesterday but the thought of it filled her with dread. Ultimately she just went over to the bar and prepared for customers. That seemed easier.</p><p>“It’s time to mix drinks and change lives.” Jill sighed.</p><p>“Jill?” Boss called in the distance. “Is that you?”</p><p>“Yup!” Jill yelled back. “Just me.”</p><p>“Good, good,” Boss said as she left her office and came towards Jill.</p><p>Were Jill’s eyes deceiving her or did she looked a bit nervous? The emotion looked strange and foreign on Boss. She sat down across from Jill, just like last night, and cleared her throat.</p><p>“I’m… Terribly sorry about yesterday.” Boss said apologetically.</p><p>“It’s… Okay...” Jill replied hesitantly.</p><p>Boss tried to make eye contact but Jill averted her gaze.</p><p>“I didn’t mean to get drunk and weird.” She started. “I just...”</p><p>She paused and Jill looked up at her, finally allowing their eyes to meet. Boss looked genuinely sorry.</p><p>“So, you’re not mad at me?” Jill asked, almost a whisper.</p><p>“No!” Boss exclaimed. “Not at all.”</p><p>Silence.</p><p>“Were you worried I was?” Boss asked, sounding concerned.</p><p>“Maybe a little bit,” Jill said.</p><p><em> You’re not just a little worried when you have  </em> <strong> <em> nightmares  </em> </strong> <em> about it. </em></p><p>“It won’t happen again,” Boss said with a weak smile.</p><p>Jill nodded, unsure of what to say.</p><p>“Well, I’ll get back to the office now,” Boss announced, seemingly eager to get away from the awkward tension between them.</p><p>Boss closed the door behind her and Jill was alone in the bar again. She sighed. At least Boss wasn’t mad at her. Now there was just this weird and awkward tension between them.</p><p>“Better than her being angry with me...” Jill mumbled, absent-minded.</p><p>Before she got to think about it more, the door swung open, and in came two unfamiliar faces.</p><p>“...and that’s why you’re wrong!” One of them yelled.</p><p>“No! You proved nothing with your ramble.” The other one said and shook her head.</p><p>“Whatever!”</p><p>The two lilims sat down at the bar and they both sighed.</p><p>“Welcome to FO-11K Vang-R,” Jill said, a little uneasy. “What can I get you?”</p><p>“Two martinis.” The second one said with a sly smile.</p><p>“You mean a Brandtini?” Jill corrected.</p><p>“I told you!” The first one said triumphantly. “It’s called a Brandtini!”</p><p>“Okay!” The second one grumbled and crossed her arms. “You win.”</p><p>“You two had a whole argument over what a drink is called?” Jill raised an eyebrow.</p><p>“Yeah...” The first lilim blushed. “We rarely argue but when we do, it’s over something as stupid as the name of a drink.”</p><p>“I can’t blame you for getting it mixed up,” Jill said and smiled at them.</p><p>“Oh well, it doesn’t matter too much.” The second lilim reassured. “We’re done now and we’re very sorry for barging in here like that.”</p><p>“No worries,” Jill replied while making their drinks.</p><p>“Name’s Nina by the way.” The first lilim said. “And that’s my ex-girlfriend, Jennifer.”</p><p>“You gotta stop introducing me like that, dummy,” Jennifer said and shook her head. “I’m her wife.”</p><p>She pulled up Nina’s hand and showed a golden ring with a pink rock embedded in it.</p><p>“Ah, I see,” Jill said and put down the two Brandtinis in front of the girls. “Makes more sense than going to a bar with your ex.”</p><p>“I’ve done that before,” Nina said and nodded.</p><p>“Really?” Jennifer asked, seemingly unable to wrap her head around why she would do that.</p><p>“I mean, I just ran into her on accident,” Nina admitted and took a sip of her drink.</p><p>“That doesn’t count!” Jennifer said and rolled her eyes at her wife.</p><p>“Totally does,” Nina said teasingly.</p><p>“Are you two gonna argue again?” Jill asked while cleaning some dirty glasses.</p><p>“No, no!” Nina assured Jill. “Don’t worry Ms. Bartender.”</p><p>“She has a name, dummy,” Jennifer whispered but Jill could still hear it.</p><p>“Oh, right!” Nina said and narrowed her eyes, looking after a name tag.</p><p>“It’s Jill,” Jill said. “I’m not wearing a name tag by the way.”</p><p>“Why not?” Jennifer asked. “Seems convenient.”</p><p>“I never really thought about it,” Jill replied. “I guess Boss just doesn’t run things like that.”</p><p>“Boss?” Nine perked her head.</p><p>“Yeah, I’ve just gotten used to called my boss, Boss,” Jill said and blushed slightly, against her will.</p><p>“Do they not like being called their actual name?” Nina asked, genuinely curious.</p><p>“I don’t think so. I just started calling her Boss and it stuck.”</p><p>“That’s pretty cute.” Nina beamed a smile at Jill who blushed again.</p><p>“Don’t tease the poor bartender!” Jennifer told her wife.</p><p>“Come ooooon!” Nina protested. “We’re just having fun!”</p><p>“Did one Brandtini seriously make you this tipsy?” Jennifer asked.</p><p>“Pffffft, no!” Nina said, clearly tipsy.</p><p>Jennifer rolled her eyes.</p><p>“Well, I gotta get this dummy back home.” She said. “Thanks for the drinks, Jill!”</p><p>“Hope you come again,” Jill mumbled but they were already out of earshot.</p><p>The whole situation reminded her of Boss getting drunk yesterday. She ignored the thought immediately. Boss already said sorry. There was nothing to worry about. Jill took a deep breath and started cleaning the dirty glasses the girls had left behind. Jennifer hadn’t even finished her drink. They were in and out so fast. </p><p>“What a strange couple...” Jill muttered as she cleaned their classes.</p><p>Before she was done cleaning, another person entered the bar. This time a familiar face.</p><p>“The great Dorothy Haze has entered the bar!” She announced.</p><p>“Hey, Dorothy.” Jill couldn’t help but smile at the lilim’s silly entrance.</p><p>“How are you doing?” Dorothy hopped up in a bar chair and put her head in her hands, seemingly ready to listen to everything Jill ever had to say.</p><p>“You’re real talkative today.” Jill chuckled.</p><p>“I’m just in a good mood!”</p><p>“I thought you were always in a good mood.”</p><p>“Today I’m in an extra good mood then!” Dorothy exclaimed. “I have a day off and I’m going around town, having fun!”</p><p>“Ah, I see.” Jill nodded. “Where have you gone to?”</p><p>“I got up pretty late so I haven’t done that much yet.” She admitted. “Actually, this is my first stop...”</p><p>“Oh,” Jill said. “That’s fair.”</p><p>“Now tell me about your day, Jill!” She demanded.</p><p>“How about you order something first?” Jill asked. “This is a bar after all.”</p><p>“Alright! I would like a blue fairy!” She happily announced. “Now spill the beans, girl!”</p><p>“Okay, okay,” Jill said and started making the drink. “Why are you so interested in what I’ve been up to?”</p><p>“Jill, we’ve hardly spoken for a year,” Dorothy said, a little more serious. “I just wanna have a talk with my good ol’ friend.”</p><p>“Ah...” Jill awkwardly placed the drink in front of the lilim. “Sorry...”</p><p>“You already apologized yesterday, Jill. It’s okay.”</p><p>“Okay.” Jill nodded and cleared her throat. “What do you wanna know?”</p><p>“This isn’t an interrogation.” She chuckled. “Just tell me about anything!”</p><p>“Alright, I can do that.” Jill nodded slightly. “Fore woke me up from some dumb dream today.”</p><p>“Aw, Fore! I miss that cat. I think he liked me.”</p><p>“I’m sure he did,” Jill replied, thinking back to the time Dorothy slept at her old place and how she had chased the poor cat around for a solid ten minutes before giving up.</p><p>“What was the dream about?” Dorothy said, pulling Jill out of her thoughts.</p><p>“It was just some dumb dream.” She shrugged. “Nothing noteworthy.”</p><p>“Do you never have any weird dreams?” She asked.</p><p>“I do sometimes,” Jill replied, thinking back. “Not that often though.”</p><p>“My dreams are always crazy!”</p><p>“That checks out.” Jill chuckled.</p><p>“Heheh, yeah.” The lilim laughed. “Anything exciting happened lately?”</p><p>“Well, I got this job,” Jill said. “That was pretty life-changing.”</p><p>“Life-changing?”</p><p>“Yeah...” Jill admitted. “I was in a rough spot before.”</p><p>“How rough?”</p><p>“Working in the maintenance tunnels and only eating every other day rough.” Jill looked down, ashamed of how bad it had been.</p><p>“Okay, that’s pretty rough,” Dorothy said, now full of worry. “Are you okay now?”</p><p>“Yeah, don’t worry,” Jill said, reassuringly. “Boss pays me well.”</p><p>“That’s good! You deserve better than that...” She pouted, seemingly upset that the world could ever hurt Jill like that.</p><p>Dorothy took the last sip of her blue fairy and put down the glass.</p><p>“Well, I’m off to do more fun stuff tonight!” She said, now back to her usual excited self.</p><p>“Have fun!” Jill said as the lilim got up from her chair.</p><p>“Will do! Oh, and Jill?” she said before leaving.</p><p>“Yeah?”</p><p>“If you need me to spend the night at your place again, just tell me.” She said and gave Jill an honest smile.</p><p>“I’ll keep that in mind,” Jill said and the lilim closed the door behind her.</p><p>She sighed. Jill had never really told anyone, except for Fore, about how horrible things really had been. She just kind of blurted it out at Dorothy on accident. At least she didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she even offered to be there for her. Jill smiled. People were there for her. Both Boss and Dorothy. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She was craving a cigarette.</p><p>“Hey, Boss?” Jill yelled.</p><p>“Yeah?” Boss replied, her voice muffled behind the office door.</p><p>“I’m gonna take my break!”</p><p>“Alright!”</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>Jill stared up at the night sky. She wished she could see the stars but the light pollution blocked her view of the cosmos. Usually, the cigarette would help her feel better. To calm her nerves. But tonight, there was nothing to help her with. She felt at peace after Boss’s apology and Dorothy’s promise to cuddle her if she ever needed it. She closed her eyes and let the cold breeze hit her face. Jill stayed like that for a while. She felt alive. The cigarette had stopped burning and she threw it away. Jill opened the door back into the bar and was met with a customer waiting.</p><p>“Oh, there you are.” He said. “I was wondering if anyone was here at all.”</p><p>“Oh, you,” Jill said and raised an eyebrow. “Alan, right?”</p><p>“Yeah, that’s correct.” He seemed happy that Jill didn’t call him space invader today.</p><p>“What can I get you?” Jill asked as she walked behind the counter.</p><p>“Hit me with a Gut Punch.”</p><p>“Will do.” She replied, mentally laughing at the thought of punching this guy in his guts.</p><p>“Has today gone better than yesterday?” Alan asked. “You know, customer-wise?”</p><p>“So far you’re the fourth person here today so I would say it’s gone a little better,” Jill said as she mixed his drink.</p><p>“I see.” He nodded. “That’s a little better than yesterday.”</p><p>His words seemed mocking but his tone didn’t.</p><p>“What made you come back today?” Jill asked and put down the finished drink in front of Alan.</p><p>“It’s just on the way home from work.” He shrugged and took a sip from the strong drink.</p><p>“Ah.” She replied.</p><p>“And the drinks here are alright.” He added. “At least compared to so many other bars around these parts.”</p><p>“Thank you,” Jill replied, happy that their bar stood out. “What kind of work do you do, Alan?”</p><p>“Just boring office crap.” He said and took a rather big sip.</p><p>He couldn’t help but grimace as he put the glass down.</p><p>“Sounds boring.” Jill nodded.</p><p>“You would not believe it.” He continued. “It’s like all the color has been sucked out of the world.”</p><p>He paused.</p><p>“The only reason I haven’t left is that it’s all we have. My family wouldn’t survive without me working that damn job.” He said bitterly.</p><p>“That sounds pretty bad...”</p><p>“It is pretty bad.” He nodded slightly and finished his drink. “How about a big beer?”</p><p>“That I can do,” Jill said and started mixing it.</p><p>“Honestly, getting a bunch of drinks is all that gets me through the day,” Alan admitted and shook his head ever so slightly. “I wish I could have an interesting job, like you.”</p><p>“Is there no way you could try to pursue anything else without risking the wellbeing of your family?” Jill asked, a little concerned for the guy.</p><p>“I don’t know.” He looked lost. “I wouldn’t know what I would even try to do.”</p><p>“Maybe you should start there?” Jill suggested. “Like, just figuring out what you want to do with your life?”</p><p>“Perhaps.” He emptied his bear, seemingly deep in thought. “I’m gonna get going.”</p><p>“Alright.” She said. “Hope you’ll come again.”</p><p>“You can count on it.” He said as he got up. “This is a pretty nice bar.”</p><p>“Thanks,” Jill said and smiled.</p><p>He put his jacket on and left the bar, seemingly in a hurry. Jill sighed. She should really have taken her own advice when she was in that same situation. There was a good chance she could’ve found another job that was better than working in the horrible maintenance tunnels. She just felt so stuck, unable to move away from it. It was like a black hole, consuming her and sending her beyond the event horizon. She felt bad for Alan, and so many others, who had to stay beyond that barrier, never escaping it.</p><p>“Maybe I should ask Boss if she wants to employ another bartender...” Jill thought out loud while cleaning the last classes.</p><p>“Another bartender?” Boss asked.</p><p>She had just gotten out her office and overheard Jill thinking out loud.</p><p>“Huh?” Jill looked up, surprised Boss was suddenly there. “Oh, I was just… There was this guy earlier who is stuck in a horrible job and he seemed kinda into the idea of bartending, I think.”</p><p>“Ah, I see.” Boss nodded. “I mean, I could use some extra manpower but I’m not sure I have quite the budget for that..”</p><p>“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Jill replied. “Maybe as the bar grows more popular?”</p><p>“That doesn’t seem too far fetched,” Boss said and sat down in the chair across from Jill. “How has today been treating you?”</p><p>“Pretty well actually,” Jill said and smiled. “There was this weird lesbian couple here who fought over the name of a drink. They seemed nice but they ended up leaving rather fast because one of them was a bit of a lightweight. I hope they come again...”</p><p>She stopped and looked up at Boss. She was totally rambling but Boss was just there, listening to every word Jill said.</p><p>“You can keep going if you want to,” Boss said and smiled.</p><p>She seemed to have noticed Jill had trailed off.</p><p>“O-okay.” Jill stuttered. “Uhm... Then Dorothy came by again. She had a day off and she had lots of plans, so she didn’t stay for long either. But we had a little bit of catching up and she told me she will come by and cuddle me again if need be. That was honestly really nice to hear. So in conclusion, that, coupled with our talk this morning, led to a pretty good day.”</p><p>“I’m glad Dorothy is still there for you.” Boss nodded. “And I’m really glad we talked about what happened yesterday. I’m still very sorry about it.”</p><p>Boss seemed to tense up a bit.</p><p>“Don’t worry, Boss,” Jill said. “You made it pretty clear that you weren’t mad at me.”</p><p>“That’s good.” She smiled and relaxed again. “Really good.”</p><p>Boss seemed to stare into infinity for a good minute but the silence wasn’t awkward this time.</p><p>“So, if I wasn’t the problem, what was?” Jill asked, hoping Boss would open up a bit.</p><p>“That’s complicated.” She said, brushing it off. “Don’t worry about it.”</p><p>“Boss, it’s never not complicated.”</p><p>“That is certainly true.” She admitted. “But still, I’m taking care of it, okay?.”</p><p>“After yesterday, I’m starting to think you’re not taking care of whatever it is, as well as you might think,” Jill said, worried about Boss. “You don’t have to do everything on your own, Boss.”</p><p>Boss sighed and closed her eyes.</p><p>“That’s just how I do it, kiddo.” She said and took a deep breath. “Maybe I’ll tell you another day. Just not right now.”</p><p>“That sounds good, Boss,” Jill said, happy that Boss didn’t just push her away like she always did when it became too personal.</p><p>“It’s been nice talking to you, Jill,” Boss said. “But I’m afraid we gotta close down for tonight.”</p><p>“Yup, that sounds about right.” She said while looking at the clock in the bar.</p><p>“I’ll see you tomorrow!” Boss said as she walked back to her office but turned around when she reached the door. “It’s nice to have you around again, Jill.”</p><p>“It’s really good to see you around again too, Boss,” Jill said and put on her coat. “See you tomorrow.”</p><p>Boss went into her office and Jill went outside, closing the door behind her. The night was dry and cold. Jill had never had much of a problem with cold weather but today she couldn’t wait to get home under her warm blankets with Fore. It occurred to her that she really missed human contact. It was only because of her cat she hadn’t gone insane from touch starvation in all that time. For a brief moment, she considered calling Dorothy but she didn’t wanna seem too desperate. Besides, Dorothy was having a day off today and Jill didn’t want to ruin that for her. Having Fore fall asleep on her was going to have to cut it again tonight.</p><p> </p><p>* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *</p><p> </p><p>After Jill made it inside her apartment, she threw the coat on the floor and quickly hopped under the warm blankets in her bed. Fore was already on his way towards her and he hopped up in the bed. The cat quickly found a spot deemed worthy and he snuggled up by her side.</p><p>“So, I’m the only reason you haven’t gone crazy from being so touch starved?” ‘Fore’ asked teasingly. “Is that just all I am to you?”</p><p>“Totally.” Jill chuckled. “You’re nothing but a piece of ass.”</p><p>“I don’t think this is how you’re supposed to talk to your cat.” He replied and started purring.</p><p>“I don’t think most people talk to their cat.” Jill sighed. “Or talk for their cat for that matter...”</p><p>She listened to Fore purring for a little bit. It was calming to listen to.</p><p>“It’s not insane as long as no one overhears it.” ‘Fore’ finally said.</p><p>“Boss heard me once,” Jill remembered.</p><p>“Oh, yeah.” The cat said. “The day she was here and you got super drunk on bad beer.”</p><p>“Mhmm, that was nice.” She smiled at the memory of her and Boss bantering on her balcony while drinking beer.</p><p>“You should invite her over again.” ‘Fore’ said.</p><p>“That actually sounds pretty nice...” Jill mumbled.</p><p>She slipped back into thinking about what Dorothy had said. That she could call her any day and she would come by and spend the night here. Jill imagined snuggling Dorothy but her mind decided to picture Boss instead of the lilim. She blushed hard and quickly shook her head at the thought.</p><p>“No, no, no, no… I’m not going back into that.” Jill muttered. “She never opens up to me… There’s no point...”</p><p>But Jill couldn’t help but feel a little hope after Boss said she would tell what had been plaguing her so much she would get drunk in front of Jill. Maybe she would do if more after that. Maybe she would…</p><p>Jill shook her head again. No use getting any hopes up. She got out of bed and into the bathroom. The person in the mirror looked tired but not unhappy. Things were slowly starting to change for the better, which was a nice realization to have. She started brushing her teeth and thought about how different things were just a week ago.</p><p>“No more maintenance tunnels...” Jill mumbled while still brushing her teeth, finally realizing she never had to go back there again. “No more stupid humid tunnels and slippery stairs...”</p><p>Fore had joined her in the bathroom, impatiently waiting for her to be back in the bed.</p><p>“Are you just gonna talk to yourself all evening?” He said, sounding grumpy.</p><p>“Kinda funny coming from you,” Jill said, fully aware of how silly it was to pretend her cat was talking to her.</p><p>“It’s more fun to take up half the bed when you’re there.” ‘Fore’ said, still grumpy.</p><p>“You always end up sleeping on my chest anyway,” Jill said on her way back to the bed, now in pajamas. “Can’t you just start there instead of shoving me aside for half the night?”</p><p>“No.” The cat said in a stern voice. “That’s not how I do it, kiddo.”</p><p>“You’re stubborn, cat,” Jill said and got into bed.</p><p>“So are you, human.” He replied, trying to find a good spot in the bed.</p><p>“Goodnight.” She said and turned off the lights,</p><p>“Night.” ‘Fore’ said and they both closed their eyes.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you did, leaving a comment really helps boosts my motivation to write more :)</p><p>Love you all who has been reading &lt;3</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hey everyone! I hope you liked this intro to a 'new VA-11 Hall-A.' I'm gonna write each chapter (from now on) as a day in VA-11 Hall-A, just in the new bar. I'm really excited to write this~</p><p>If you did like the story, it would be amazing if you left a comment. It really gives me a big boost in motivation when I see people enjoying the things I write~</p></blockquote></div></div>
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